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Turkuaz is a 9-piece "Powerfunk" outfit from Brooklyn, NY, whose modern take on the classic funk sound has established them as leaders in the funk revolution that's currently taking place in the genre. Blending elements of Pop, R&B, and Soul with their distinct aggressive funk core, Turkuaz sounds like the musical love child of Sly & the Family Stone and Talking Heads.

With the release of their new album Digitonium, Turkuaz's sound is more accessible than ever and poised to break out to a more mainstream audience. With a playful feel that evokes the best of 80s dance music, Turkuaz's tightly arranged songs are built on thick grooves, driven by powerhouse rhythm and horn sections, as well as four distinct vocalists.

The group's constant coast-to-coast touring since 2012 has earned them a passionate and dedicated national fan base that's consistently growing. A dance band at their roots, Turkuaz's live shows are high-energy, floor-shaking, visually appealing events filled with colorful clothing and choreographed dance moves that always leave attendees wanting more.

Turkuaz's crossover appeal has never been more evident—from a recent video performance going viral and receiving over 2 million Facebook views, to their music providing the soundtrack to New York Knicks games at Madison Square Garden, to constant rotation on Sirius XM Radio, Turkuaz is, as Relix Magazine says, "on the verge."

Moon Hooch captured the imaginations of thousands with its infamous stints busking on subway platforms and elsewhere in New York City: two sax players and a drummer whipping up furious, impromptu raves. This happened with such regularity at the Bedford Ave station in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, that the band was banned from playing there by the NYPD. The trio's subsequent tours with They Might Be Giants, Lotus, and Galactic as well as on their own have only broadened the band's appeal. Wherever Moon Hooch plays, a dance party soon follows.

Hornblow Recordings and Palmetto Records are now proud to release Moon Hooch's second album, This Is Cave Music, on Sept 16, 2014. The title refers to the term Moon Hooch coined to describe their unique sound: like house music, but more primitive and jagged and raw. Horn players Mike Wilbur and Wenzl McGowen do this by utilizing unique tonguing methods, or adding objects -- cardboard or PVC tubes, traffic cones, whatever's handy -- to the bells of their horns to alter their sound. Not to be outdone, drummer James Muschler gets swelling, shimmering sounds from his cymbals, and covers the head of his snare with a stack of splash cymbals to emulate the sound of a Roland TR-808 drum machine's clap.

Wilbur was raised in Massachusetts, and Muschler in Ohio; McGowen grew up in several different European countries. The three met while students at The New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music in New York City, and they found in each other a common work ethic and holistic philosophy. Moon Hooch are committed to environmental and agricultural sustainability, and they're such fans of Michael Pollan's groundbreaking The Omnivore's Dilemma that they visited the farm that Pollan profiled in the book, Polyface Farms, in rural Virginia while on tour in 2013. Moon Hooch literally caused a stampede when they set up and played their song "Tubes" in the pasture as cattle swirled in the background. (The trio lived to tell the tale, and the "Cattle Dance Party" video has been viewed nearly 200,000 times and counting on YouTube.) Muschler also maintains a blog called Cooking in the Cave (cookinginthecave.net) where he chronicles the band's vegan tour-van culinary endeavours -- it's amazing what these guys can do with a hot plate.

While their self-titled first album, which cracked the top 10 of Billboard's Jazz Albums chart, approximated the band's acoustic approach to dance music, This Is Cave Music takes their cave music hybrid further into electronic and pop music realms with synthesizers, post-production work, and even singing added to the mix. "We aren't trying to do it for the sake of reaching a wider audience," McGowen points out. "We are doing it because it's where our passion has evolved to. This album is a culmination of that."

The source material was, like the first album, mostly recorded at The Bunker Studio in Brooklyn by Jacob Bergson, with McGowen on contrabass clarinet and baritone saxophone, Wilbur on tenor saxophone and vocals, and Muschler anchoring things on percussion. Everyone was involved in the digital additions. "We spent a lot of time on tour producing the set, running all the live sound through Ableton software, and manipulating the studio sound on our computer while in the car," Wilbur explains. "We could just pass the computer around and work on it for hours."

The album opens with the old school "No. 6" where Wilbur wails on digitally modified tenor saxophone as McGowen anchors the low end with contrabass clarinet, providing those shifting acid house bass sounds. As always, Muschler provides tasty, precise beats and fills.

Things turn to straight up new wave on "Mountain Song" with Wilbur's dreamy vocals alongside icy synthesizers and machine-like drumbeats with contrabass clarinet filling the backdrop. Celebrating the band's love of Depeche Mode, "Rainy Day" is a classic synth-pop love song where Wilbur actually recorded his vocals in the van after a gig in North Carolina while on tour with Mike Doughty.

The circular sounding "St. Louis" is the final of three synth-pop road tunes written by the horn players. (The tour stop that gave the song its name was also memorable because Muschler cut his hand wide open while making dinner backstage. The drummer played that show in St. Louis and many that followed with one hand.) This is the band at its most anthemic with Wilbur on vocals and sax, McGowen on contrabass clarinet and a now-healed Muschler on drums

"5-Sax Piece" uses multiple sax overdubs from Wilbur to create a polytonal, synthesizer-like backdrop, while elsewhere, McGowen's Electronic Wind Instrument (EWI) synthesizer can be heard at various times, most notably on the track that bears its name.

The album closes with a suite of songs that fit together so well that they are usually a closing sequence of the band's live set. Written by Muschler, the first chord of "Bari 3" features the lowest note of both the baritone and tenor saxophone and moves on from there to more traditional Moon Hooch fare. Sliding in behind it is the trance music-like "Why Not," which was written by Wilbur. The idea here was to write a two-note melody and see how far the band could take it, which is quite far into minimalist house music. "Contra Dubstep" follows with Wilbur singing, rapping even playing slide whistle.

The finale is one of the band's most popular and infamous songs. A live YouTube video for "Milk and Waffles," finds the band playing in the middle of a freeway bridge; while no cars ever pass, Muschler was so overwhelmed by the moment that he closed the song by taking off his clothes, trashing his drum kit and walking away.

Listening to this music, it's easy to become emotionally invested. It may not always prompt you to strip off your clothes, but the emotional impact on both the musicians and their fans is visceral and undeniable.

In the vanguard of the new-funk movement, KUNG FU is quickly popularizing their unique sonic contribution “NU-SION”, blurring the line between intense electro-fusion, and blistering dance arrangements. Making funk fusion music “cool” again, the band draws on influences such as early Headhunters, Weather Report, & Mahavishnu Orchestra, and merges those ideas with technical fireworks and a contemporary EDM informed sensibility. The ensemble, a seasoned pedigree that reads like a late-night summer festival all-star jam has been described by critics and fans of Galactic & Umphrey’s McGee alike as “lethal funk”, “explosive”, “jaw dropping”, and “musically mesmerizing”. For the uninitiated, the experience is typically shocking yet the focus is simple: ENTER THE DRAGON!

Since their conception, ten piece band West End Blend has been playing their version of pop, soul and hip-hop in venues all over. Fronted by vocalist Erica Bryan, the band pays homage to classic throwback sounds while adding their own distinct sound and flair. West End Blend boasts a four-piece horn section, two guitars, bass, keyboards and drums packing the group onto stages every night. From humble beginnings in an epic basement funk dance party, The Blend’s goal has always been to bring a party atmosphere to every show and venue ever since.

The Blend just released their debut full length record, “Rewind”, on September 26. Recorded at Telefunken Elektroakustik with engineer Brendan Morawski in CT, the band is proud to present the kick off to the next step in their career. West End Blend is just getting started and there’s so much to do. But right now... it’s time for them to pile into the van. This juggernaut of a funk and soul band is ready to hit the pavement.

No-Fee Tickets:

No-fee tickets for shows at Royale, The Sinclair and Great Scott may be purchased at The Sinclair box office (52 Church St., Cambridge, MA) Wednesdays through Saturdays from 12PM to 7PM. Please note, box office is CASH ONLY.